Oregon’s new Attorney General Appoints Environmental “Activist” to Staff
Earlier this week, the Hillsboro Argus reported that
One of the leaders of the fight against proposed natural gas development in northwest Oregon is joining the Oregon Department of Justice as a special counsel.
Brent Foster, executive director of Columbia Riverkeeper, has been one of the public faces of the fight against liquefied gas terminals proposed for the Oregon Coast, and compressed gas pipelines that would deliver that fuel inland.
He’s been appointed by incoming Oregon Attorney General John Kroger as special counsel for environmental enforcement and policy. In that role, Foster will likely have a key role in Kroger’s fight against the pipelines and terminals.
Earlier this year, a commentary published by the Oregonian demonstrated Mr. Foster’s complete lack of knowledge regarding LNG
On a positive note, the article [which was biased and suggested that the Bradwood LNG terminal would be exporting gas overseas, etc.] provided yet another opportunity for Brent Foster of Columbia RiverKeeper to demonstrate his complete lack of understanding of LNG, natural gas and the technologies employed for bringing them to market. His assertions were uninformed and simply wrong. An LNG terminal would help stabilize energy costs and be good for Oregon economy.
As Oregon Public Utility Commission Chairman Lee Beyer noted earlier this year, “Other regions of the country are all looking to secure access to additional gas supply sources, such as LNG and nonconventional gas to replace supplies from quickly diminishing domestic and pipeline import sources. The Northwest should so the same.”
The necessity of the new LNG terminals has been demonstrated. Oregon’s new Attorney General has made a grave mistake.
